AMES – Iowa State gets its rematch against Kansas State at noon Sunday in Hilton Coliseum. In the last match, the Wildcats pulled off the reverse sweep against the Cyclones in a match that had 27 ties and 16 lead changes.
Junior Maya Duckworth, who made her return to the lineup last game, had 23 kills, nine digs and five blocks in the first game against Kansas State. If Duckworth can return to form, Iowa State will have offensive help.
Sophomore Pam McCune had her second 10 block match of the season in their last matchup. McCune has been out of the lineup since the Cyclones last played the Wildcats, so if she returns, that will also add offensive and defensive power to the lineup.
Freshman Rachel Van Gorp and Junior Faith DeRonde will look to build off of the momentum from their earlier game against Texas Tech, where they were in double-figure kills.
Senior Brooke Stonestreet was one dig away from 20 digs and moved herself into 10th all-time with 1,293 digs in the match against Kansas. Stonestreet holds Iowa State’s only Big 12 honor this year when she won Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week in week four, an award she has won four times, which places her fifth in program history.
Iowa State head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch seeks her 207th conference win, which would tie her for third in Big 12 history.
The Wildcats overall record is 6-11, but they do hold a 4-4 record in conference play which is ahead of the Cyclones at 3-4. They have a 2-4 record on the road and are coming off of back-to-back losses including a five setter against Kansas.
Honorable Mention All American Aliyah Carter has 286 kills at four kills per set to lead the Kansas State offense. Brenna Schmitt has 62 blocks at 1.11 blocks per set. Her net front presence will make it difficult for Iowa State who is already thin at that spot.
In the Wildcats’ match against no. 21 Utah, Carter had her career high in kills with 27 at a .362 hitting percentage. With this performance, Carter moved to second all-time in program history with 1,652 kills.
Iowa State is encouraging fans to show up in all black attire for a blackout. There will also be a hat giveaway for all students.
The game is set to begin at noon Sunday and will be broadcast live on ESPN 2.
